And the winner is....

It's finally come to pass. I've gotten a NEW car. I emphasize the NEW part of things because the car is actually NEW.

I decided on a 2010 VW Golf Hatchback. I got the 5 door model, 4 passenger doors and 1 cargo, with the regular gas engine. I had spent about 6 months doing a bit of research on what vehicles would make the list of those I was to take for a test drive. After giving some thought to what type of vehicle would suit my purposes I determined that a small, fuel efficient car would be the best choice for me. I soon realized that in order to get a car in that category I would have to forgo the traditional Big 3. I was okay with that. Those auto makers simply don't offer a vehicle in that class worth my consideration; save the Ford Fiesta which at the time of my research and purchasing timeline was not yet available on North American shores.

I narrowed my choices to the following vehicles: the Honda Fit and Civic; the Mazda 3; and the VW Golf and Jetta. The Mazda didn't hold up for me once I sat in the car and I took note of how uncomfortable the drivers area was, I felt as though I was wrapped very tightly in a blanket. The Civic was a very comfortable ride and had a well designed interior yet it lacked the creature comforts in the lower end trim lines. Thinking that if I'm gonna spend the money to get those features I may as well check in at VW. I wasn't yet done with Honda however, the Fit still remained. The Fit is an amazingly well designed car. It's interior is spacious and at no time did I feel that I was driving a car that's as small as it really is. There's a great deal of thought put into the Fit and I felt that I was driving the car I would purchase. Then I took it on the highway. The car has almost no acceleration. I must admit that I felt genuinely nervous about merging in the car, fearing that I would be run over at any moment. So long Fit.

This all brought me to VW. I've loved VW's since well before I could drive and I don't know why. There was just something about the brand that spoke to me. So I drove a couple. The ride on both the Jetta and the Golf was supple and smooth. I felt that the car was begging to be driven. The interiors offer no wasted space and I felt as though I was in a luxury car. Bringing me to the price. The VW's are more expensive to purchase, there's no way around that point. However, to get all the features that the baseline VW has in a Honda, you'd have to get into the top of the line Civic or Accord. Once you do that your spending the same money, so then why do that if I enjoyed driving the VW's more?

Ultimately while I thoroughly enjoyed driving all the vehicles I did test drive, the VW won out if for no other reason then that I loved driving it. I felt at one with the car right from the get go. I chose the Golf over the Jetta because it's a cheaper vehicle to purchase and a cheaper vehicle for me to insure.

I've had it for a week and it has more bells and whistles then I can count and it's fuel economy is not too shabby. No, not as good as the Fit and not as good as the diesel version of the same car, but to purchase the diesel would've cost me more and I wouldn't have gotten the benefits out of it; I simply don't drive enough.

I'm by no means a car expert, I just know what I like and what my experiences were. I whole-heatedly recommend at least checking out VW if you're in the market for a car.

PS. My father has never owned a vehicle from a foreign automaker and I think after being in my car a few times he's beginning to regret that decision.

He's not the "Great One" yet.

Sidney Crosby is not yet able to be called Canada's next great hockey player.

Wow, did that feel good. I suppose I could just stop talking there and I'd feel better, but I think I'll site some evidence first.

I'll start by focusing on the now complete Olympics. Crosby was not the leading goal scoring for team Canada. Seriously, check the site, all the individual team stats are on http://www.vancouver2010.com/. It seems to show that Jarome Iginla was the leading goal getter. Beyond that, despite the call by the TV play-by-play announcer during the shootout victory against Switzerland, "with the game on the line, who else could it be?" I don't know how about any of the other amazing goal scorers? Like Jonathan Toews, last I checked he put in 3 goals in a Canadian World Jr. shootout victory.

Crosby, is a great player, and while I admit that part of my distaste for him comes from the fact that he's on the Pittsburgh Penguins, that doesn't change the fact that he hasn't yet earned every accolade that is being bestowed upon him. There were 2 players on team Canada that were younger than him and every bit as impactful, Jonathan Toews and Drew Doughty. Toews had the most assists on the team with 7, the most points with 8 and the best +/- with a +9. Doughty was tied for the best +/- among defensemen with a +6 and proved amazingly effective when stopping Ovechkin. Crosby had the most ice time amongst the forwards and he had the most shots on net and his +/- was a +2. Perhaps the offensive minded Crosby could've learned something from the gritty and durable Iginla who finished +5 with the same 7 points.

I acknowledge that Crosby is the youngest player to captain a NHL team to a Stanley Cup victory, but unlike a tremendous predecessor in Steve Yzerman, he was almost instantly surrounded by great players to aid in elevating the young phenom to super-human status. Yzerman didn't get much help until much later in his career; not his fault I may add, he just didn't have an owner like Mario Lemieux to invest that much money into the team.

Sidney Crosby seems to play a fairly reserved, opportunistic style. His chief rival, Alexander Ovechkin, plays an aggressive, passionate style; and to that point, Ovechkin beat out Crosby for the Rookie of the Year. Crosby doesn't seem to be able to take a hard hit, let alone dish one out. Ovechking flattened Jaromir Jagr in a way that left the long-time hockey star shaking his head. Now that was good watchin'.

I know that I may be nit-picking. But the sense I get from watching Crosby play is one of entitlement. He seems to expect that the seas will part so that he can be the hero while more proven players know better.

Oh, and as a final parting blow: that penalty shot against Germany should've been taken by Rick Nash. He's every bit as talented a goal scorer and he does it with a lot less help in Columbus then Crosby does in Pittsburgh.